This invention relates to electric connectors housing contacts having a plurality of spring members and more particularly to connectors housing contacts with opposed spring members.
The loading or assembly of electrical connectors housing a plurality of contacts with opposed spring members or arms for frontwardly receiving mating contacts has been associated with a number of problems. In one type of these connectors, the spring members are centrally located and separated by small ribs molded in a pair of opposite sides of the contact-receiving cavities. During assembly, the spring members ride on closely spaced, outwardly facing shoulders of the ribs and are maintained in a spaced apart relationship by the ribs. With miniaturized connectors, the ribs can be very narrow which can cause complications in dimensional accuracy in the location of the ribs and each of the shoulders. Extreme narrowness of the ribs can in some instances also cause damage to the ribs during assembly of the contacts or during insertion of mating contacts. In addition, the rib necessitate separation of the spring arms which is not always desirable.